I am having a great time in New Orleans. My first and only trip to New Orleans before this was the 2003 Fall Nationals. The weather that time was surprisingly cold. The clothes I brought with me to that tournament were not suitable for the chill, so I did not venture out too much during… Continue reading BRIDGE: New Orleans NABC – Gonna Make You Sweat
Up early. Always happens on the day that I am scheduled to leave for a nationals. I have a flight this afternoon into New Orleans. It has been a bit nerve-wracking over the past two days to watch the progress of tropical depression, nee tropical storm, Bonnie as it crossed the Atlantic, Florida and the… Continue reading BRIDGE: Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans?
The newest Internet meme is the “I write like…” machine. It takes a sample of your writing and compares it to various authors to find the closest match to your writing style. I have no idea of the algorithm involved, but I was overly flattered to find out that… I write likeDavid Foster Wallace I… Continue reading I write like…
“Freakonomics” for Soccer. “Moneyball” for futbol. If you remember nothing else from this review than that, you will have the major point. “Soccernomics” is a book that applies economic principles to the game of soccer. While European soccer is the main focus of the book, Americans will find something of interest since the authors make… Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: “Soccernomics” by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski
It’s an old tale told many times – a man (almost always a man) battles with the devil for possession of his soul. This time the man is James “Sharky” Harkin, and the setting is Baldoyle, North Dublin, Ireland on Christmas Eve. Sharky opens the play by coming into the living room area of what… Continue reading THEATER REVIEW: Performance Network’s “The Seafarer” by Conor McPherson
I first “discovered” the World Cup back in 1982. Spain was the locale, and PBS was showing the matches in the US. On my bookshelf is a book by Franz Beckenbauer recapping that event. I knew nothing about soccer at the time, but I was fascinated by the passion and the spectacle. The story of… Continue reading World Cup Quarterfinals
Apropos of Mark 